Toronto Unplugged

Facebook lurking helped me (re) find Five Star Trailer Park.  I saw an alert that a mate had joined their group and I went back and listened to them again, because I remembered digging their sound when they were featured on CBC Radio 3 back in February.  A very cool indie rock pop band from our fair city. 
Their sound is a vibrant mix of softer sounds and lyrics with rock riffs and strong vocals.  Comparisons have ranged from Ryan Adams to Foo Fighters.
Formed in 2004, Five Star Trailer Park is no stranger to big shows, and its past accolades are plenty. The …read more

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There was a plethora of great content in the Music Channel this month.  There were a ton of tips to new music, handfuls of concert reviews, album reviews, industry news, compilations and lists.
Here is a recap of some of the top content from this past month.  Enjoy!
Austin Sound Check already has the SXSW 2009 Dates.Big Apple Music Scene has a list of her favorite CD store in NYC.
Brit Music Scene begs for BoyZone to give up.
Christian Music Fan reviewed David Pettigrew “Every Minute Miracles”.
Concord Crazy delved onto New Zealand’s Coat of Arms.
Country Music Stop tells us about the Country Music’s …read more

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After a three year recording hiatus – during which he played two historic concert series in NYC and LA devoting one evening each to his Jam, Style Council, and solo catalogs, and earned Lifetime Achievement honors at the 2007 Brit Awards, among other highlights – Paul Weller returns on July 22 with 22 Dreams, his ninth solo album and the most ambitious of his career.
22 Dreams is not a return to form. It is not “Weller’s best record since [fill in your favorite album here.]” It is a complete flowering of every musical impulse this artistic polymath has previously …read more

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Foxboro Hot Tubs Fans….
Foxboro Hot Tubs new single, “The Pedestrian“, from their upcoming full length album, is now available for download at on their website courtesy of Jingle Town Records. You can download the new single at 320k MP3s; the highest quality available, direct from the band.
The Band will be announcing tour dates shortly and there will be some cool shows in Toronto.
While the band’s history is, as yet, unknown, they are comprised of the members of Green Day who are, according to rumors, performing “garage” music under the side project name.
Gotta love this new wave of music promotion. …read more

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After a short hiatus, The Assistants are back performing live again with new drummer Evan Bender. The band has a show booked for Friday April 18th @ Rancho Relaxo. The show comes by way of the ongoing ‘Two way monologues’ music series.
The show starts at 9pm and the cost at the door is $7
The lineup is as follows…
Opopo (Toronto)
Les Handclaps (Montreal)
The Primordials (Toronto)
The Assistants (Toronto)
Give us your thoughts on the lineup.

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It’s always fun watching bands creep into stardom. Bell X1 have been making music for years. Their latest (and third) album Flock was just released in North America and is quickly getting passed around with praise.
The band’s name (the merit often debated) derives from the film and book The Right Stuff. The Bell X1 was a supersonic research project and designed to be the first aircraft to breal the speed of sound. The band was drawn to it for it’s “naive discovery”
Jet setting from Ireland, the band is currently playing the El Mocambo and I expect …read more

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One of the great aspects of b5media’s Music Channel is the diversity. 25 different bloggers with an extremely wide variety of musical taste and preference.
This week, we decided to list off the 76 Songs That Have Our Ear.
Why 76? Because Rock and Roll is unpredictable…
Various bloggers throughout the channel have listed off the songs that have been residing in their ear buds. Some are old classics, others are so new we’re not sure they exist and some are undiscovered gems. Click through the links below and discover music. Enjoy.
Our Digital Music let’s us in on a great collection of songs …read more

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The Coast is quickly becoming one of Toronto’s most talked about Indie sensations. This track The Lines Are Cut lets you in on the buzz.

The Salingers are another Toronto band getting some pre-hype. The band is working hard to get a sharp new release out. If their Myspace tracks are any indication, this band will be big. Standout track: 2025
Swedish rockers The Hives recently challenged the Swedish players of the Vancouver Canucks to a game of hockey at General Motors Place. Word is that the band didn’t have a goalie, so they used build …read more

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Around the b5media Music Channel, a few bloggers have listed off tracks that are stuck in their head. In addition to our list of ‘songs that get stuck in your mind‘ some others have listed songs (both good and bad) that they can’t shake. Have you say by checking them out….
Metal Martyr has listed some terrible songs that Scott would love to shake out of his melon.
Beatles Invasion throws it back a decade or two and lists some gems like Come On Eileen and a little Kung Fu Fighting
On the verge of insanity – because of songs like …read more

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Toronto Unplugged needs your help….
We’ve been charged with creating a list of bands/musicians/artists to watch in 2008 – those who we think will break the scene.
We have our personal favorites, but we want to hear from you.  Who are you following as of late?  Who have you seen lately that blew you away?   Is there a release that you can’t stop playing?
There will be a good number of Toronto/Canadian bands that will rise through this year and (with your help) we will list them here.
The list will be posted in roughly two weeks – with links to each artist/band …read more

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